Berthe Morisot (1841-1895) A
French artist whobecame the first female impressionist. She was thegrandaughter of a famous painter, Fragonard, and theyoungest of three sisters who were given lessons onpiano, sewing, and watercolors while young. The oldestsister tired of art lessons but the younger two did not.They found an art teacher, Joesph-Benoit Guichard,who in a time when official art schools were closed towomen, expressed the following to their mother,"Considering the character of your daughters myteaching will not endow them with minor drawing roomaccomplishments, they will beciome painters. Do yourealize what this means? In the upper class milieau towhich you belong, this will be revolutionary. I mightsay almost catastrophic." Berthe's mother ignored thewarning. Berthe's daughter, the artist's sisters andtheir families are the subject of two-thirds of the 350paintings completed by the artist. She married theyounger brother of Edouard Manet.

As a wealthy woman, Morisot, as did many
womenof her class at the time, hired a wet nurse to tendto her daughter. The wet nurse had to leave herown child so that she could attend Julie, Morisot'schild, so that the painter might paint and pursueher art.

Little Boy in Gray is a portrait of
the artist's cousin,
Marcel Gobillard. It was completed in 1880 and now
resides in a private collection.